Three R's and Some Ass-Kicking

[March 2nd, 2005] Gang fights in high schools. Meth addicts on the basketball team. Teenagers talking trash to their elders. Is there any way to save the next generation from itself?

State representative John Lim (R-Gresham) thinks he has the answer.

Lim has introduced House Bill 2503, which would require Oregon high schools to offer martial arts.

The study of martial arts goes beyond mere physical education, Lim told WW: It promotes courage, discipline and well-being, and it delivers a spinning kick of fury to drug and alcohol use.

"It's an art, it's a philosophy, it is a teaching," he says.

Growing up near Seoul during the Korean War, Lim didn't have the opportunity to study martial arts, though he now holds an honorary fifth-degree black belt in tae kwon do.

At first glance, it might seem strange to curb teen violence through the art of combat. But Lim asserts that martial arts are "about defense, not hurting," and he cites research suggesting that students who study martial arts spar better with their schoolwork.

Unfortunately, Portland Public Schools—who are hard-pressed to teach PE at all—hope the bill will be given the fabled touch of death. PPS spokeswoman Megan Currie isn't sure how much the proposal would cost (Lim doesn't know, either) but opposes forcing schools to offer such electives.

"While we support strong physical education," says Currie, "we don't believe mandates are really the best way to go."

The bill has been karate-kicked over to the House Education Committee.